New Year
by entre-lagrimas-y-suspiros
Summary: MMHG Femslash. It New Year's eve and there is a party at Hogwarts but Minerva is melancholy and Hermione goes to find out why.


_AN: Hello all sorry that I haven't written/updated in so long but I'm goign through major writer's block. I'm hoping to work myself free of it before the end of June. Any ways hope you enjoy this, please review. _

_Xio_

New Year 

Hermione looked around the Great Hall it was a beautiful star lit night, as always yet there was a difference in the ambiance. There was an air of promise about the coming year that filled everyone in the room with a sense of new energy. As Hermione's eye landed on the enormous clock hanging from the ceiling but in especially for the occasion she realized that the New Year was going to be there a lot quicker than she had thought only five minutes. She looked around at the former order members, now either close friends or family, as they mingled with each other not a care in the world and rightly so they all deserve to be carefree and they could afford it now. The war had been over for almost a year now, ten months to be exact, and everything was right in the world or at least they had no reason to fear for their lives anymore and when you've lived that way everyday for years then any other problem seems trivial. Everything was just how it should be everything that is except she couldn't see Minerva anywhere. She had been melancholy through out the day as they had made all the last minute preparations for the party. The melancholy had lifted with the arrival of each guest to the point Hermione thought that it had totally disappeared. But looking around now she had to admit she had been wrong.

Hermione moved through the small crowed towards the door. Once outside the Great Hall Hermione's feet took her to Minerva's private rooms without even a second thought, the route burned into her memory after six months of walking it on an almost daily basis. Instead she thought about why the path was so familiar to her. After the war had officially ended with the trials of the last few Death Eaters, Minerva had decided it was time to finally reopened Hogwarts not everyone had been enthusiastic about the idea thinking it was too soon, including herself, but Minerva true to form said her students had already lost two years of school she would not let one more day pass with the school closed. And there had been a scramble to get as many of the old staff back to as soon as possible but even then there had been a need for teachers. It was then that fate intervened Hermione hadn't known what to do with her self then and having no place to go the familiarity of Hogwarts and its staff lured her to the school. So when Minerva had offered her the position as potions professor she had jumped at the chance, even if with a little doubt. . It had seemed like the perfect place to make a new start and she hadn't been disappointed. To her great surprise she discovered that she was good at teaching and even more surprising was the fact the she loved her job. Though it was no surprise to the people she worked with, least of all Minerva. And beyond her job at Hogwarts she found people more than willing to welcomed her into their close knit family and she learned that those professors she had once like and respected for their knowledge she now loved and respected for their warmth with which they received her and the important bonds of friendship she now shared with them. The strongest bond of all she had formed with the owner of the rooms she was heading to.

As she grasped the handle of Minerva door Hermione paused bringing her thoughts to the present and preparing herself for what she guessed would be a melancholy, if not depressed, Minerva. She walked into the room closing the door softly behind her not wanting to startle Minerva. Hermione saw her sitting by the window still wearing the dark green robes she had bought specifically for the party, Hermione sighed in relief at least Minerva hadn't decided to go to bed abandoning the party all together. As Hermione looked her over more closely she noticed this was a small victory. Minerva's hair looked as if she had been passing her hand through it leaving the once perfect French braid a mess. She had a flute of champagne in one hand and a bottle in the other. Hermione watched her as she lifted the champagne flute to her lips, her eyes never stopping her investigation of the world outside the window.

Hermione walked to Minerva and took the other seat by the window. She looked at Minerva waiting to be acknowledged. Minerva finally looked at her but said nothing and then returned to staring back out the window.

"There is a party going on down stairs you know." Said the familiar voice with the heavy Scottish accent. Hermione smiled at the irony, she should be asking that.

"I know."

"So why aren't you down there?"

"You're up here." It was Minerva's turn to smile though it wasn't the full smile Hermione had become so accustom to. No this smile was strain, it was held back by the sadness it Minerva's deep blue eyes.

Minerva had hoped to be able to escape the party for twenty minutes or so enough time to ring in the New Year alone. She knew it wasn't the smartest idea she had ever had, to sit alone letting the sadness and loneliness she felt eat away at her, but it was better than facing her troubles at least for that night. However it seemed she would not be permitted to sulk, instead of escaping her troubles, there in front of her not three feet away sat the reason for her melancholy. She let herself study the woman before her. Hermione was young, beautiful, and full of live, and right in front of her reminding of what she wanted most but could not have. Minerva hadn't wanted to be the only person left standing alone in the middle of the room at midnight, hadn't wanted to take the chance of seeing whether Ron Weasley would be able to win his former girlfriend back with a sweet kiss on New Years eve to breath back live to the once very intense relationship. So she had walked to her rooms to hide her loneliness from those she loved. The last thing she wanted was to spoil what should be a very joyful night.

Hermione saw the dark clouds gathering around Minerva, she sighed heavily she loved the woman she did but Minerva had a tendency of beating herself up over everything. Though what it was Minerva was beating herself over at the moment she didn't have the faintest idea. Hermione reached for Minerva's left hand which held the bottle of champagne. Minerva looked at her without letting go of the bottle.

"There aren't any other champagne flutes around."

"I can get you one."

"Don't bother, I'll take the bottle." Minerva starred at her before loosening her grip and letting the bottle slide into Hermione's hand. Hermione took a sip from the bottle then put it down.

"Its not really you're thing." Hermione said pointing towards the flute in Minerva's hand.

"That's what every one else was drinking so I thought why not." Minerva moved the flute to her lips again. Hermione looked at the clock on Minerva wall and moved out of her seat to crouch in front of Minerva who could do nothing but look at her bewildered at the sudden movement. Hermione saw Minerva's reaction but paid it no mind as she reached out her hand to Minerva's cheek.

"Kiss me." Minerva looked at her as if she had completely lost her mind.

"What?" The question came out as a sort of shocked half chocked gasp.

"It's new year's eve Minerva and its tradition to kiss someone at midnight. And lucky enough I want you to kiss me. I've wanted you to kiss me for a while now and have been waiting for the opportunity to arise and I might be wrong here but this seems like the perfect moment for a first kiss." Hermione smiled at the baffled expression on Minerva's face. "Just one more thing, and please correct me if I'm wrong but I think you want to kiss me as much as I want to kiss you." Hermione stopped, if she had been a little more adventures she would have kiss Minerva right there and then but she wanted it to be Minerva's decision, she knew if it wasn't a conscious act on Minerva's part she would run the risk of the kiss being denied later. So she waited knowing a response would be forth coming, a verbal one or the kiss she so desired, and Minerva didn't disappoint her though it was not exactly what Hermione wanted to hear.

"No I have to admit you're right but that doesn't mean that we should do anything about our desires." Minerva's voice rang out with as much conviction as possible when you are lying to someone's face knowing full well they can see right through your lie.

Hermione didn't let her disappointment show instead she breathed in and out, before asking in a clam voice, "Why?"

Minerva stayed silent, there was no reason for her responses and both knew it. Hermione was right she wanted, craved, was dying to kiss her but a foolish fear gripped her, stopping her from doing what she wanted most.

"You don't have an answer Minerva, because I'm right. I want to kiss you and you want to kiss me, and as far as I know neither you nor I is in any sort of relationship. And I'm not going anywhere even if you don't kiss me right now because I think I'm in love with you. But I think this is the perfect time…" Hermione never got to finish the sentence the word love spurred Minerva into action and she did as Hermione asked, kissing her softly pressing her lips to those of the women before her. Then slowly running her tongue across Hermione's lips asking and demanding entrance to her mouth which Hermione gladly granted. Minerva slowly explored Hermione's mouth sweetly sucking on the younger woman's tongue. Minerva wanted it to be the perfect first kiss, so when she felt her passion ignite she pulled back and saw Hermione's eyes flutter open with her moist lips still slightly apart.

"Happy New Year, Hermione." Minerva smiled in response to the smile which speared across Hermione's face.

Hermione slowly stood up and offered her hand to Minerva, who accepted it, and finally caught her breath. "Come on there is party going on downstairs with all our friends and family. It's a new year Minerva and things are better right now than they have been in five years. So I want to celebrate." Minerva's smile grew wider as she followed Hermione out the door.


End file.
